The smallest floorstander in Sonus faber's newly revamped Sonetto range of loudspeakers is one of the more affordable ways to acquire ownership of a product from this respected brand. Sure, you can spend half the money on the company's truly entry-level Lumina III – but then again, you can drop twenty-five times that on a pair of its Aida floorstanders, making the Stradivari G2 almost look like a bargain.

The changes for the second generation of the Sonetto III loudspeaker are subtle but numerous. The company has paid attention to everything from the design of the driver baskets and surrounds to the construction of the internal chambers and the base the speakers stand upon. If you subscribe to the concept of multiple marginal gains, this design will undoubtedly pique your interest.

UP CLOSE

Where both visual and tactile signals are concerned, the Sonetto III G2 is unmistakably the work of Sonus faber. High-gloss black and wenge finishes are available as alternatives to the walnut of my review sample. No matter which you select, you'll find yourself in possession of an elegantly proportioned, flawlessly constructed and beautifully finished pair of loudspeakers. The lute-shaped cabinet so beloved of this brand is present and correct, and if the price point dictates that it's constructed of MDF, the real wood veneer that covers it is superbly applied, visually striking and pleasing to the touch.

At 1,068x287x350mm [HxWxD] this speaker strikes a nice balance between discreet and imposing, and the integrated cast concrete plinth on which each one stands offers a pleasing contrast to the cabinet it supports. As standard Sonus faber practice, the front baffle is leather trimmed, adding to the visual and tactile appeal. This new speaker is a 2.5-way design, with a 28mm silk damped apex dome tweeter sitting above a 165mm mid/bass driver and a bass driver of the same size. Both larger drivers feature the distinctive 'flower' pattern first seen on the dizzily high-end Suprema loudspeaker system, has an aluminium demodulation ring, and share the same 2,700Hz crossover.

The tweeter and mid/bass driver occupy a box that vents at the rear of the cabinet; the former has a closed motor system that prevents it from being affected by the latter's activity. The box itself is organically shaped and made from recycled cork. Sonus faber is very taken with the acoustic properties of this material, especially where midrange resolution is concerned. The bass driver is in a separate enclosure and has a reflex port that vents downwards onto the fixed boundary of that concrete plinth. Each of the bigger drivers sits in a newly designed diecast basket.

The result is – at least according to Sonus faber – a loudspeaker with a frequency response of 38Hz - 40kHz, sensitivity of 88dB and a nominal impedance of 4 ohms. All of which means that this speaker should be easy enough to drive by modern solid-state amplifiers of 50 watts and upwards, providing they work well with low impedance loads – and most can, these days.

THE LISTENING

If you're familiar with the Sonus faber house sound, you will find nothing surprising or disappointing in the way the Sonetto III G2 performs. It is so faithful to the company's established sonic signature that it's almost a caricature – but in an entirely positive way. Driven by a Cambridge Audio Edge W stereo power amplifier and playing music from a variety of sources, it's an uncomplicated and unequivocal listen. A vinyl copy of Neil Young's Tonight's the Night extracts deep, textured and detailed bass that hits with determination. There's so much information available that it's made all too apparent that Billy Talbot really should have changed the strings on his bass guitar more often than he did.

Midrange resolution is similarly accomplished, which is very much a double-edged sword where this particular recording is concerned. Every bum note and mic-pop is identified and contextualised exhaustively. Young's vocal performance throughout this album is scandalously sloppy, and the Sonus faber doesn't disguise this. Switching to LP1 by FKA Twigs lets the Sonetto III G2 demonstrate that when a singer is technically proficient and utterly committed, it is able to communicate emotion and attitude as well as the very best of its price rivals.

The top of the frequency range is slightly less assertive than other areas, but that's not the same as saying it's in any way underplayed. Treble sounds have substance and detail in equal measure and can muster a polite level of attack when the material demands it. For example, Patti Smith Group's Easter sounds clear without threatening to become hard or edgy. Even when you wind the volume up towards properly antisocial levels, the top end stays in lane and behaves itself.

This speaker's fine sense of tonal cohesion makes recordings sound like a singular event rather than a collection of discrete occurrences. And where dynamic variations are concerned, the Sonetto III G2 is attentive. Small harmonic changes in an unaccompanied voice or solo instrument are given appropriate weighting, and the big shifts in volume and/or intensity apparent in Talk Talk's Spirit of Eden are given full expression. Rhythms and tempos are handled confidently, and the Sonus faber can demonstrate authentic musicality just as readily as it can act as an analytical tool.

The only area where this speaker is less than stellar is stereo soundstaging. However, it's still more than capable of laying out the recorded acoustic coherently and making the relative position of individual elements apparent. The Talk Talk recording is suitably expansive, as is the 'live in the studio' ensemble accompanying Neil Young. Yet there's still a hint of introspection to this speaker's voicing – it doesn't throw itself way beyond the cabinet boundaries when given the chance. Meticulous placement certainly brings the Sonetto III G2 out of itself, but Sonus fabers have always sounded more on the suave and polite side, than they have harsh and bright. This illustrious brand is famous for its fine reproduction of classical music, so headbangers need not apply.

THE VERDICT

At the Sonetto III G2's premium price point, buyers are spoiled for choice. There are some that sound bigger and more immersive, but you'll be hard-pushed to improve on its balance, insight and musicality. Oh, and good luck finding a rival product that is better made and finished or more elegantly decorative. This new Sonus faber convinces in almost every respect and, as such, is well worth an audition.

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